Can you answer any of the questions?
EFL/ESL Teaching in China: Questions – Questions – Questions
This article raises numerous fundamental issues which appear to have been overlooked by China in its exuberance to embrace EFL/ESL teaching as China rushes to join the new world order and partake of its share of the global economic pie. This article establishes a solid and fundamental legitimization for asking the politically incorrect, controversial and sensitive questions but leaves their final resolution to the language teachers, graduate students and linguists who have the inherent fundamental duty to seek the answers. (2007) Frontiers in Higher Education, Ch. 10, Nova Science Publishers.
Study English from the “real” heart. That’ s the first belief I have had when I started to learn English when I was just a little girl. Because of the reason of my father, I connected the foreigners very early. Through it has been forgotten with me of the plenty stories happened abroad when I was in other countries, I could know one thing clearly that the first sentence of English words my father told me was that , “please , ice-cream”. Yeah, that’s my first words in English. When we were young, we can learn what we want, and the parents would create us a beautiful environment which is useful for us to learn inside. However, people forget it when we grow up now, that we still need a “real” environment to learn, maybe not only English, but also everything we should learn.
I think that we should not only learn the English language, we should learn much more about the culture. We don’t live in the same environment with the West. So we can not understand well about English. Every language has its cultural background. Maybe we ask some easy questions because we are afraid of making mistakes. Or we are afraid that foreigners think that we are brusque. But we want to learn it well by our hearts, at least, most of college students do. We try to have a better talk with the foreigners. And we should creat an language environment that we need, and then we practice English more to make it better. We hope that we can do something for the society. That is the way that we are responsible for our courntry and for ourselves.
After reading this article, I made a deep thinking. These questions appropriately point out the disadvantages we have in teaching English. They deserve us to ponder and make some changes.
After reading this article, someone may consider that English is not so important to us. Maybe we can drop it. However, what I think is opposite. Our country always encourages all of us to learn English for some ridiculous reasons. There are some of us who have learnt English so hard but will not use it in future. These are true. But in my opinion, our country’s behavior is just a policy because it can not be foresaw which of us will need to use English in future. Our country is a developing country. In order to catch up with the developed countries, we need to get new knowledge from them, so a worldwide language is called for. Of course, what our motherland most wishes to see is all of us can contribute power. Maybe this is why our country does that. It is the same reason why we learn English hard.
In spite of this, we really need to make great changes in EFL. The methods of teaching and learning should be changed first. Otherwise, we will never master English, not to speak of using it.
There are so many questions in the article, sometimes I am confused, because I can not answer some of questions mentioned. But there are some I can make sure, for example, why should 1.3 billion Chinese people learn English? The answer is obvious to the eye. As one of the six official languages at the United Nations, English is a world-wide used language. It is very important for all countries in the world to learn English, especially for China, who has joined the WTO. To make progress, improve ourselves and communicate with different people from different culture, it is useful and good for both individuals and the coutry itselt. We use Enlish as a tool to understand other countries and people better. As today China is biger and biger, maybe one day 13 billion people in other countries have to learn Chinese.
English is very important to our students, because we should read lots of English papers to help our studies or researches. But I think the ultimate question is that is English as important as we have been imaging? Of course the answer is no. We artificially make it almost more important than any other subjects. As Niu Qiang and Martin Wolff said, in China, English is viewed as “the gatekeeper” to higher education, employment, economic prosperity and social status (Niu Qiang, Ph.D. and Martin Wolff, J.D.). Is English really necessary to so many public institutions and enterprise units? Of course the answer is no, too. So, that’s really strange: A boss know that English is no use in his company, why does he hold English exanimation, and reckon it as a gatekeeper?
English is important and that’s a truth, but it has its limit. I believe that learning English for promotion is really a stupid action, not the examinees, but the person who hold the English examination and he just don know why.
Editor’s Note:
There is more than one way to skin a cat.
Stop using excuses to justify your laziness.
I am sorry to say that there may be some problem with the Web page.When I click the link ‘EFL/ESL Teaching in China: Questions – Questions – Questions’,I can not find the article. Those words ‘Not Found
Sorry, but you are looking for something that isn’t here.’appear.I have tried several times,the result is same.I think it is necessary to make sure the article is visible to us.
This article put me into meditation. Every student in china has to learn English from his or her primary school. However, what a ridiculers thing, most of us would ineluctably forgot the words a bit by a bit, until all. Thus all the English we learn come to be a waste and all our endeavor is actually on value. To detect the reason, it is because that there is no a ESL/EFL in china, or we can speak it, practice all in our life.
In regardless of the great progress we have made in economic filed, our education system especially the English teaching system is till imperfect. Thus it may put a bad effect on our country’s further development. So it is our urgent task to establish the ESL/EFL in china.
Most of the eight questions are similar with what we have discussed before. So, this time, I want to write something unrelated to this article.
This paper recalls me the six Chinese English teachers during my English study in middle school.
My first English teacher is a man who was more than 40 years old at that time. He likes drinking wine so much that sometimes he was drunk before he conducted a class. So in that class he would gave us students a lesson which had nothing to do with English. For it’s too long ago, I couldn’t remember his words. Once upon a time, he put “I YOU HE SHE IT WE YOU THEY” and “ME YOU HIM HER IT US YOU THEM” and the “color” such as “WHITE BLACK BROWM BLUE GREEN”and some other nouns such as“SKIRT SHOE DRESS TROUSERS” together and asked us to remember them. Next day, there was an exam in the class. Unfortunately, some students failed and they were forced to copy all the words for 100 times and this “special” homework must be handed in next morning on time.
My second English teacher is a beautiful single female who has long black hair. She spoke English at class though it’s very easy, such as “MAKE A SENTENCE ONE BY ONE, TURN TO PAGE…”She also encouraged us to speak English at class, too. The most important thing is that she never gave up any students no matter how low marks they got from the exam. She kept hope for every student especially those who didn’t want to learn English. She also encouraged us to trust ourselves and didn’t copy from others in the exam. There are two trivial matters I can’t forget. The one is that once she said in front of all the students that my pronunciation was the best one among all the classmates; The other one is that she said to me “I know your English is good, continue your efforts!”with her hand clapping my shoulder when I entered into her office. I remember these words of encouragement all the times especially when I lost faith in my English.
I have a blurry memory of my third English teacher for I always hoped that my second English teacher could come back when I attended her class. The only image I remember is that she stood at the platform holding a stack of cards with English words she wrote on them, and asked us to read. Each class we must do the same thing. And she always wrote a full blackboard of English sentences containing complicated grammars in them and our students copied them to books. What we did during that period was preparing for the senior high school entrance exam.
These are my three English teachers…
I have to admit that questions raised in the article are really sharp, which make me have a deep thought.
English is the widest—used language in the world, and it plays an important role in communication, especially in international affairs. Compared with countries which also don’t use English as their first language, China’s enthusiasm on English learning is very high, but the result is not accord with what we have spent. We have all kinds of English exams, many students learn English from kindergarten to post—graduate, we spend much more energy on English than any other subjects, one of my English teacher even joke like this:” your Chinese can be bad, but you must learn English well.” After years of learning, students may find that they still can’t speak English fluently, it’s a common phenomenon in China.
That may be most relate to the teaching system in our country. In the traditional class, the teacher speaks most of the time, there is little time left to students. Without enough practice, how can we expect them to speak well! Besides that, the standard for English teacher is not so strict as others, that’s kind of strange.
Totally speaking, there is still a long way to go on how to make English learning more effective in our country.
I am confused after my reading this article.I just want to talk ahout one of these questions.”How can EFL teaching in China be called a success?”In my opinion,if we master a language successfully,then we can communicate with each other in it just like our own mother language.Even you get a high score in examations,such as CET4,CET6,you can not speak,then you failed in mastering it!So in China,if everyone can speak English just like Chinese,then we can call it succeed!
The article show us these several questions, all those questions reflect a deep thought. Some of them I may have some my own perspective. Why should 1.3 billion Chinese learn English? If we only concern that we won’t use it in our later life or there won’t so many jobs that need English ,of course, many of us needn’t learn English .while the point is our parents or ourselves can’t run a risk on this point .Parents want their children have a good future, children themselves also hope a good life .No pains, no gain. If we don’t prepare for ourselves, what can we do when we found I need English. As the questions like ” Is it inevitable that although we teach them English, they will learn Chinglish?” we have talked about them before ,so I don’t speak more
I have never expected to learn English well. But in our society or it should say, in the real world, English is more and more important than ever. Without English, you are a man without knowledge.
Though English is so important, we are not trying our best to learn it well. What We see, we think, we say , has nothing to do with English at all. Why? Because it difficult to do such things with English. And then why it is difficult? I have no power to solve this problem, because it is so complex.
Yes,our country has put much in civil English studying,maybe it can not make ends meet,but we have been trying our best to improve the situation and make our dreams come ture.Maybe our aim is to communicate with foreingers easily or lay a foundation for our bright future,English is worthy of our endeavour,although it is not nessessary for everyone to study English in my opinion.Of course ,there is still a long way for us to learn English,for it is not only a language ,but also a culture,whose background is greatly different from Chinese.
Although there are many graduates who use English sometimes, I think learn English is necessary for Chinese student. I mean you know more and you will have more chance than those who not learn English. Today, almost every company will contact English, for example, many advanced machines are made in foreign country, so the instruments are written in English.
On the other hand, some people learn English with no aim, many they learned are no use in their work or study. I think we should learn those which are used to us not every epact, just for showing of his knowledge.
In my view, we learn things for main two causes, the one is we need it, the other is we interested in it. Learning English is no exception. The blind of English learning not only wastes much money of government, school and family, but also brings much pressure to some people, in particular the children. For most people, they needn’t use English in their job and dairy life and they also don’t interested in it, there is no need for them to learn English. The money spent in EFL/ESL in China is too much and waste, we can use the money in other fields more useful. Chinese image does not depend on people’s English level but on the overall quality of China and Chinese people. Human being should have his own ideal and determination and be cautious of drift.
Learn any language needs a proper environment the point is how to create a English speaking environment. There are many years for Chinese learning English, but the effects are not good, we should consider deeply why.
I always like to respect someone do one thing all life.however,I didnot think I am the one do one thing all life. I change schools every period,as i like to enjoy more varities envirnment,new things make me excitement. However,I have to pay sth when I do the news.Because I also lost many opptunities to do others.Appriciate SYSU,You lead me to find myself in my mind.Ishould do a thing,I like,well,better and best,and enjoy the fun.Save my energy not to do what means nothing to me.
I may recieve more chance if I do better in E.However,not,not my pursue.I find chinese are much practice,but do many insignificance often.Should ministry of education reviews their decision?
In the article, describing such a phenomenon: most Chinese learn English, but “95% of Chinese college graduates will not use oral English in their whole lifetime nor will they read any English materials. This is a question worth pondering. We have study English from junior school. In that time, we have no idea on why should we learn English. We just knew that we have to do. Though we do not often speak English, I think learn English is useful. Take a recent event as an example, the teacher asked us to do a regional planning, so it is necessary for us to read the texts of some foreign good planning. China has 13 million residents which take up a large proportion of world population. We have already had a strong team of speaking Chinese. We are learning English in order to better absorb the advanced foreign knowledge. Learning English is other way to open mind.
I extend my sympathy to the foreign teacher who was nearly driven crazy by the students. It woke my memories about my foreign teacher in high school. There were over 30 classes of the three grades in our school and he was the only foreign teacher. So every two weeks each class had the honor to be taught for 40 minutes. But the little progress in English base on his great effort turned out to be the failure of the past several years study of English. We could hardly communicate with him and it decrease his enthusiasm. He would not like to train parrots like the Chinese teachers did but he could not change things in 40 minutes every two weeks. Soon he left and we felt a great loss. The situation of foreign teachers in China are negative, most of them are used as an aspect for raising enrollments. They may teach as the Chinese do as the expectation of school or do nothing and leave. Seldom can they gain great achievements in teaching if the whole EFL environment does not transform.
The English teaching loses its way and direction, we should consider well before we go on.
Every time when I read the relevant or similar articles of TEFL in China I felt depressed. Because there are a lot of questions and problems in China, we are just like sailing in the TEFL Sea, trying to find the right teaching method direction, hoping to pull in to the comprehensible English shore some day. From my perspective, it is important to propose the questions in publish, so people especially the Chinese English Teacher will review the teaching they had been experienced or leaded. Some phenomena described in the article is a little extreme, however, it also provide a good example for us to devote ourselves.
I felt depressed for I can’t change the situation, except I really improve my English level, and got comprehensible English. What’s more, what I can do is to share the article with my friend, who had become an English teacher in middle school after her graduation. They’re big problems, may be we can solve them one step at a time.
Yes,we learn English for more and more years but useless.And the English text and test in our country has been harder and harder!I don’t understand!Why we make so much effort to compete with others and why so little results we gain.Do someone want more and more people hate English then somebody can win and beat the other person?So bad when this happen.I have been tolerated our odd English teaching systems for so long and I want to change it someday.I dream I can open an institution teaching students all kinds of language at a relax environmeng and in an efficient way.May my dream come true when I was not too old!
The first time when I saw these questions, I had two strong feelings. On the one hand, I have to say that I was a little confused about my own answers to these questions and I did not understand the metaphor of the “wine” either. On the other hand, I was eager to know the answers given by the professors, because every time there are many surprises.
I think, in recent years, it is impossible to let the Ministry of Education to announce that students can make their own decisions about whether they will learn English. Besides, as the article has already said, there are many problems of with EFL/ESL teaching in China. To some extent, we are all unqualified produces of the traditional English teaching style.
However, the situation can not be changed overnight, so we’d better create our ESE and make our English better first.
I have learned English for more than ten years. It’s always one of the most important parts of my study although my English is poor all the same. Sometimes I wonder why I study it so hardly. Whether its worth or not to spent so much time on it? Whatever, I think it could be useful and I will study it by my heart.
In my opinion , our government and ourselves have spent much more energy and time than necessary on the English. However,the result turn out to be no good.
Nowadays,English in China is regard as the passport to higher education, income and social status. So most of the Chinese students have to learn the English from the primary school to the university, with the only purpose—passing the exams.There is no doubt that one can not learn something well if he is not interested in it at all.
Everything has it process, so it will take us a long time to change this situation .
As it’s said in this article, here is the dilemma about the EFL/ESL teaching in China: on the one hand English is compulsory in school, on the other hand, there is no language environment in the society.
I have been studying English for over 10 years. At the beginning of college, I studied English very hard, because I wanted to pass the CET4 and CET6. But after that, I dropped it altogether. In my heart of hearts, I hated English. It meant endless exams. My English teacher I had met before I went to college talked with us in very poor oral English, or never in English. They just asked us to memorize new words, do more homework. They didn’t care about our oral English.
After I went to the college, something changed. The English teacher kept telling us the importance of the oral English. They also talked in good English. They made us to some homework to practice. But it was not enough for me. What I want is not just reform, but revolution. Later, I began to have Holistic English. To be honest, I was deeply troubled by the homework at first. But a month later, I suddenly found this is what I want. Now, I just enjoy the freedom, the freedom to choose interesting and understandable materials, the freedom to decide when to access the materials, and the freedom from the stress of doing assignments in preparation for a test.
Yes, there are many questions in China English learning. From the middle school to postgraduate university study, I experience most the situation that Professor Martin said in his paper. China students learn English as early as possible, they start to learn English letters and words at the same time learn Chinese letters and characters in primary school, they are so young to differentiate Chinese to English letters at all. They can only remember few simple English words which is not enough to communicate. This is not the best way to educate to our children. When we enter the middle school, we start to learn English systemically, from letters to words and sentences and grammars. But most of our Chinese English teachers teach English in Chinese, the aim of learning English is passing the College Entrance Examination. Their English learning is not come from their interesting and their deep hearts. So they cannot use the language as their own. When they enter the college or university, CET-4 and CET-6 become their new pressure, they begin to remember as many words and phrases as possible to pass the exams. But they do not use these words and phrases at all in their daily life. When they enter the postgraduate school they realize they waste so much time, but it is so late. So our education department should make available and Chinese-suitable education system.
I think there are many questions about the system of education in China ,not merely in EFL teaching .The questions Martin professor proposes are gradually recognized by more and more teachers and students .And I think the best way to resolve these questions is reform .In the old system of education ,students are passive ,they just learn what the teachers teach and don’t think creatively ,finally ,they could pass the exam as long as they recite what teachers teach .The result of exam-oriented education is making students mute .In fact ,the reform should begin from education department to teachers and students .For the subject of education ,teachers should receive advanced educational ideas actively ,and make use of the ideas to teach students more efficiently
It’s strange for me to spend about nearly 6 hours to read this article with similar issues before. What attracts my eyes? Not the content of the article but the eagerness to learn English. I have no energy or ability to change the style of learning English in China. It’s a complex problem which needs several generations to deal with. But, I change my attitude to learn English. I take my old note book and write down the important words and phrases. It’s a good habit to learn English, as to me. I am puzzled why so many classmates complain his former English teacher. They lived in a special period without English Speaking Environment or excellent English teacher like Martin Wolff. How they can get the holistic English consciousness! Without the fundamental vocabularies and grammar learning from them we can convey fluently? I experienced teaching biology in a senior middle school. You can teach them like a college or university students? No! It’s not your teachers’ mistake. Without their endless endeavor probably you can’t pass the college entrance examination, and can’t enjoy the joy in the holistic English lesson. When we argue whose fault why not start learning English dispassionately.
I quite agree with the views of the article “EFL/ESL Teaching in China: Questions – Questions – Questions”. “Until the euphoria of EFL/ESL teaching and the huge economic business sector it has spawned are put into proper perspective, China will continue to waste its valuable resources producing more EFL/ESL failures than successes”. Not everybody has to learn English, we could not judge abilities by the level of English language. Some fields of working, for example, gardening, need not use English at working time. So, the requirement in these job should not including English level. People who take such jobs need not have a certificate of English level. Thus, we should take the problem serious and find a correct way to deal with.
After reading this article, I am lost in deeply thought. Most of the questions in this article I have never considered before, and I don’t know how to answer. As we know, in our country’s education system, students have no right to choose which foreign language to learn. We learn English just because we do have to. Although there are many students like English very much, also, the number of people who do not like English is very large, for they do not know why English is so important and what value in their future careers is. So, in my opinion, to solve the questions mentioned in the article is not easy, but the first thing we should do is to change our education system.
After reading the article, I thought a lot. Although we dicussed some of them before, the more I thought about it, the less I could answer. It is no doubt that there is a limbo about English taught in China. English is a useful tool to help us to communicate with foreign, with the world, so it is necessary to learn English. At the same time, there are many questions about the system of education in China, like mute English,no English environment and so on. However, I think the situation is just unabiding.At least,we have more and more oral English classes,and more and more opportunities to speak English with foreigns
Atfter reading this article, I thought there are some problems in the way we study Chinese. First is the attitude we hold ,lot of our students study English just for passing the exam not for communication, so we even didn’t know the English of the things we used in daily life ,everyday we just speak Chinese just in exam we use English. Second the way we learn is not right,most of us can read the article and answer the question in the textbook but cann’t see what the movie about and get what the foreigner said ,we also can’t communicate with foreigner freely that’s all what the function of a kind of language. For one day I try my best to create English environment –no Chinese ,but we are not successful to do it just because we can’t make clear what we said. We really need the environment ,but it really different.
In the article, it makes me a deep impressing. I learn English more than ten years, but I don’t still know how to speak English well. My oral English is poor and I am afraid of chatting with the foreigners. Actually, I learn English but useless. I don’t apply in my life. When I studied at the secondary school, I had part-time job in the McDonald’s and be forced to communicate with the foreigners. However, it is a short time to practice my oral English. I think if I can improve my oral English, I will take a long time to practice and stay at the English environment.
Really so many questions about learning and teaching English.Why should 1.3 billion Chinese learn English is a meaty theme for study and debate.As for the whole people,I don’t think it’s necessary for all of them to study English.Just sent those who need English to English major and the government use its financial,material and human resources in a concentrated way to provided them with English resources.As the other people,if they don’t need English,let it be,they don’t have to learn it.The society should give their more time to do what they like.It’s not I that don’t want to learn English but some of my classmates.Studying English for more than ten years painfully,without making much progress,they really intend to shift their attention and cultivate more other advantages.
Everyone needs to be encouraged,if they can’t reach any achievement in one field,why shouldn’t they change?I say that not because I don’t plan to learn English anymore,on the opposite,I like English and want to do well in it.Since I was in trouble with my English,I’ve been at a loss ever before.Just take myself as an example,if my English teachers didn’t encourage or praise me at crucial times,I didn’t think I had the boldness to continue to study English diligently.I still remember that my English teachers praised me in front of all my classmates which made me determined to be in good standing.What’s more,I also remember my teacher in senior middle school who is our headmaster and speaks fluent English in a nice voice,the second most beautiful pronunciation I’ve ever heard and the first one is Martin,a native American.
English talents could be divided into many kinds,some are good at written translation and others may be good at oral interpretation.The majority of us are only skilled in one of them.If on a day when students learning English can identify their talent and they feel just like a fish in water,EFL/ESL in China could be called a success.
At present,I must grind away at English studies,for the most majority of the papers I have to read are written in English.All in all,so far my condition of learning English is most pleasant misery.Hope I could stay up and see the rainbow after the rain.
When I finished this article, I kept on thinking the reason why we all have to learn English and in so early an age. When I started to learn English, I was in the first grade of middle school; and as I know, the students who are in the first grade of primary school are required to learn English. This is a problem that bothers me a lot. I have a highschool classmate who was good at every subject except English. And he took the college entrance examination twice and only went to 3-year college all because of his poor English score. Now, he has a desirable job and a happy life and doesn’t have to use English. When I asked him why not learn English harder in high school, he told me that he knew he can live without English in the future. That makes me really shocked. And it is the same, if someone knows he will have to live just when he acquire English well in the future, he will learn English by himself without being forced by his teacher or parants. So, it is really unneccessary for every students in China to study English in such an early age and so long a time.
I think that it is impossible for each of the 1.3 billion people to learn English. And it is even not necessary. First of all, food and clothing may stll be a problem in certain areas of China. Then how can they have conditions and state of mind to learn English? Secondly, from the application level, probably most people will not use a second language in their whole lives. So ,for them, learning English may only be a waste of time and effort.
But as a postgraduate student, I think that learning English is essential. First, the schools and the Internet resources have been sufficient for us to learn English. Secondly, we need to learn and absorb advanced scientific research and methods from other countries. Therefore, learning English is very important for us.
After reading the article, I think a lot, which I never think before. From the day we entre middle school, but now the primary school, we started to learn English ,but after graduation, some of us even never refer English. So now, we should keep doubt to learn English, whether it is useful to learn English or not ,whether we need not learn English . but I do not think so, after entering the WTO, china started to connect more closely with the world, in the world, the English is very ,very important. Most people speak English to do business in the in the world trade. So I think it is very important to learn English, especially in future. Maybe now we do not use English .but once we need English , it is late to learn it immediately. English is a communication skill. It is good for us to master more skills.
I am always looking for the reasons that why I have studied English for over 17 years but I have not really acquired English and I even don’t have a real English name until I began to have holistic English classes in this university. For myself, I study English assiduously since I began to study it, but till today I can not communicate with a foreigner fluently. Why we can’t? I think it is not only because we are shy and lack of confidence but also because all we learned are mute English. It is true that the teaching of English as a Foreign/Second Language (EFL/ESL)in China has become a nationwide endeavor pursued at all academic levels, from the kindergarten to the University, actually it is a good phenomena and right action, but there are something wrong. As the article above mentions, there are eight or more unanswered questions concerning our country’s nationwide EFL/ESL teaching fever that we should get serious. I think it will take a long time to consider and deal with these questions, then create an appropriate and good English learning environment in China. For ourselves, in order to make our oral English better we should take practicality action, practice more and speak more.
Our English education had an improper beginning and left a big mess. This article shed light to the problems, dividing it into eight questions and giving some solutions. They are difficult to answer. Not all the Chinese people must learn English. They can save a lot of time. A good way to learn English is to read, listen and speak more English. Don’t worry about using Chinglish. There are Indian English, Singapore English etc. why can’t we have Chinglish? To practice more English, we need an English-friendly environment or English Speaking Environment (ESE). Now that the solutions are figured out, we’d better put them into practice. Hope the big mess will be solve soon so that the new generation can learn English in a willing way.
When we see the title”EFL/ESL Teaching in China,Questions-Questions-Questions” we know that there are many questions in EFL/ESL teaching in China.What it said in this article is true. We spend much time in studying English but we can’t speak English frequently.Actually we spend too much time in studying English. We just memorie some words and phrases to pass exams.Even we have English class our English teacher just say little English but much English.After class we talk to others in Chinese not a English word. These are the way of our studying English.Many English major’s students also speak little English when they talk to others.I am very sad that we spend so much time in studying English but we can’t use it.However I learn something from this article that we ourselves should create an English environment for studying English.Maybe this can help us study English well.
This article sets every English learner thinking. Each should think over carefully whether you have grasp the essentials of English. Maybe very few people can admit boldly. This is just English learners’ hurts. Well aware of this inadequacy, every English learner should take action to overcome it, not always find an excuse. As an old saying goes, do not explan for failure, just seek the way of success.
These queations refered in this article are really exist in china for a long time, with most chinese english speaker without realizing that. Maybe from the very beginning we have got a wrong understanding of what teaching and learning english mean and that caused most english learners can read english but cannot speak fluently. Someone even cannot make themselves understood. How to teach english in china is a big problem that the government should do something to solve.
Actually,it’s a long but comprehensive article.Just as Peter from class 1 said,these overlooked question refered in this article exist in China for a long time. From these two days taking the responsiblity for the hall of the Chinese-German Water Forum,I find that most of us just feel shy to open mouth to speak English with others no matter he or she is a foreigner or Chinese and I know that most of them would like to communicate with the foreigners in English.So,just drop your faces if you really want to improve your English.
Learning a language is a difficult course. Maybe only an English environment can supply a good way to study English. So there are a lot of problems about the education of English in China, for example CET4 / 6. But China has a large population. The way of education to such a lot of people must consider many factors, such as cost, maneuverability and some others. Maybe the current education way of English is only a balance of the effect and the cost. But if our country wants to improve, the education must be reformed.
Learn English? I never ask why, Because the schools ask us do. I has learned English since I attended primary school without considering why. It seems that I should think about such problem a little bit now. Why should I learn a foreign language? Just in order to pass exams? It is not my finally goal. To be honest, I really donnot want such consequence. But how to make English learning make sense is the real problem. To some extent the questions selected in this article will help me to solve my puzzle.
These questions are a great shock to me though we had discussed some before. Yes, teaching English in China is a difficult thing to the foreigner teacher because the traditional teaching model in China is so different from western. When I was 12 years old I began to learn English. English likes a stranger stand from me and I was so curious about it and could not wait a minute to learn it. At the beginning everyone was interesting in it but after few months the passion was gradually sunk because we had to take the grammar examinations. And time by time English became a required course and we had to learn even we had no interest. Because I was raised in a poverty-stricken area in Jiangxi province, the school’s conditions were so bad and you may take a shock when you heard of a teacher who was teaching math to teach the children’s English. Unfortunately that is true.
After we enter college, though we know the importance of grasping English, but some classes were so boring just like the course in high schools. And the students take the course only for passing the examinations. The real meaning of English learning no longer exists. So disappoint and the interest of learning English was also disappeared.
Fortunately, the teaching conditions are getting better than ever and the teacher’s qualities are improved. The children are so lucky and so blissful because they have learn English in a better environment and in an early age. The situation is changing. And like I said before, learning is depend on one’s interest, with the help of the better conditions, I think, English teaching will be more easy and more acceptable.
The 8 questions in the article are general but can not be ignored. Maybe the minister of education can give a highly attention on them.
After reading this article ,it makes me deep in thought and review the Process of my English learning,My first English teacher discourageed me the the passion for English,he accdicted to smoking and drinking ,what’s worse,it made me silk when he Pronunce the English word from his mouth,his major is mathmatics not English ,because the English teachers are not enough in the poor countryside, marjorty of my classmate can not prnunce rightly after 2 years English learning. This leads me to learn English behind a lot of people in the future,the problem mentioned in the article is common in china,we have talked about it several times,in my opinion ,With my own experience,to achieve great progress,I claim tha the good enviroment including the learning facilities especially the teacher is very important .a good teacher can inspire your interesting in your whole life especially when you contact it for the first time .i have leart English for over 10 years,in my classmates and relatives eyes .my English is wonderful.but I am sorry to say that my oral English is poor ,I can not talk flluently to a foreigner,it maybe the sadness of chinese education system of teaching, This should be worth of all of the educators for deep thought and finding the solutions to problems.let us say goodbye to “mute English”
So far as I feel,EFL/ESL teaching in China is a effective way for us Chinese to learn oral English. But everything has limitations. EFL/ESL teaching can only be used in some particular people, such as postgraduate students or graduate students. So we can’t overrate it and be more objective. Some of the questions may not be answered easily or even it has no answers. So what we students should do is to find a useful and suitable way of learning English for ourselves.
Teaching and learning, the endlessly interesting research subject for the educationalist or the educational reformers. But for the students, academic problems from education are boring. The only major case that most students care a lot is that the teacher-student relationship, which is not mentioned in this book. I truly believe that a good teacher-student relationship is able to effectively further the student to a higher level in study. The teacher with patience and understanding encourages the students instead of pushing or forcing them, maybe teacher Martin gets angry by the lazy students is a good example, I think none of hate students hate oral English lessons, understanding is the main reason of this problem, lots of us can’t understand the purpose for our teacher’s strict management and even fewer students have a bad relationship with teachers. So, to lead the relationship between the teachers and the students towards a good direction will make learning so enjoyable and funny that the student would work hard willingly.
With the development of the current society, English study has become a necessary language mastered by all over the world. But we Chinese people always speak English loudly very well, how do these questions arise? Perhaps just as this book “Frontiers in Higher Education “said, this mainly depends upon our higher education system. I think most of reasons are aroused by that. As if we study always in order to acquire a university diploma. I hate this, in my opinion a high diploma doesn’t represent anything but shows that you have learned at school for many years. For developing our country’s economic and extending our culture and communicating with other cultures in any other country, we should realize our disadvantages and reform and innovate it in the future. This is my opinion about it.
I think I even could not answer any of these eight big questions in this article. Maybe not only me, anyone who can answers or solves these questions has not yet emerged. We are looking for the answers all those years, and these are not simply related to the education, culture or even polity. Well, we wave the flag and ask for reform, but we should know that,”a road of a thousand mile begin with one step”. To be honest, I really don’t like the education system right now in our country, but I think this is the most appropriate in China now.
Teaching or learning English is also the same. Just like I hate CET, but I think if there is no CET any more that lots of other problems would be followed on.
So as you can see, we have being confused and struggled,